Did i screw up my new Macbook :(????

Hello all,

I just wanted to know if i screwed up my battery life. I just bought a black macbook a week ago and I was really excited to use it so i started it as soon as i got home without charging it or having the adapter plugged. I went through the set up for 10 minutes and then decided to plug it into the adapter while it still being on and using it for a bit. After i finished this i put my macbook to sleep and charged it fully. and that was that. However, I charged my macbook fully yesterday overnight and it began to lose its battery life pretty fast when not plugged in. I had the brightness at the lowest, and better battery life setting. I had airport on and was only using skype msn and safari. Now I'm reading all this stuff about calibrating it and discharging this and that the first time you use your macbook and i feel as though i screwed my battery up the first time. Can i do the calibration now even though its after the fact?

I checked my battery information and it said max mAh was 5188 and condition was good. Having this macbook for only a week and only 3 cycles is this something to worry about? I also checked the serial number and it is W8836.

Can someone help me Please

Sure. 3 cycles in a week is a bit on the heavy side as far as I'm concerned. I always have mine plugged in, and when it's not the max is for 10 minutes. MacBook's batteries are good for about 300-350 cycles. So try to always keep it plugged in. I don't think you've destroyed your battery, but whenever you're trying to install something, and especially setting up a new computer ALWAYS have it plugged in, otherwise your battery will run out very quickly.

Don't think your battery is completely ruined. How long does it take to run out usually?

you probbaly took a bit of the longevity out of the battery.

at worst, you may need a battery in a couple years rather than three or four.

as far as battery life goes, airport will drain the battery relatively quickly, but if you need it, you need it. keeping the screen brightness low is a good idea, and remember to turn off bluetooth if you don't use it.

Don't use a bright wallpaper either. I burnt this HUGE yellow mark in my screen.

I always have my bluetooth on, as well as airport, even when I just have music playing. I never thought about it really. I have used 172 cycles and my battery still last for about 5 hours just sitting, unplugged. Should I start saving for a new battery, or is it good for a while still?

Most Apple notebook batteries are good for about 300 to 350 cycles.

cost..

how much do these new batterries cost or does apple replace them for free?
anyone know.
ohh and can i take the battery out on my mac and just run the power through it or not?

johngriffin16 said:

how much do these new batterries cost or does apple replace them for free?
anyone know.
ohh and can i take the battery out on my mac and just run the power through it or not?

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a) Can't remember. If there's something wrong with it Apple will replace it, but if it's just old they won't
b) Yes, but beware of knocking the cable out.

skaheadpunk said:

b) Yes, but beware of knocking the cable out.

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Indeed. Everytime i use my macbook anywhere else than my usual desk, i accidentally unplug the power cord at least once or twice.

The magsafe plug is great, since most of the time my cord gets unplugged it would most likely have resulted in the macbook falling on the floor had it not been for the magsafe

This upside is also a downside, since the cord WILL come off rather easilly so if your battery is not in the macbook it just shuts off

If you run your MacBook without the battery installed it will run slower. The CPU GPI and Memory will actually be under clocked and depending on what you are doing it may be noticeable.

I love the magsafe feature. People are simply amazed if they trip over it and I'm not affected. What's great is watching them try to catch my non-moving computer.

I've seen them as low as about 50, but it's a refurbished one if you choose to take that route. Up to about 110 or so, just from a quick search and the average for a new one somewhere around 79 or so.

When I first got my MacBook Pro, I plugged it in the charger at like 4 AM then went to sleep. The next day I woke up at 2 PM and then turned it on. It worked pretty fine. I don't know why but I do that with almost all of my new laptops, cell phones, shaving tools, etc. I usually charge them for some good hours then start working on them. Wow, am I just that smart? LOL

Tarek said:

When I first got my MacBook Pro, I plugged it in the charger at like 4 AM then went to sleep. The next day I woke up at 2 PM and then turned it on. It worked pretty fine. I don't know why but I do that with almost all of my new laptops, cell phones, shaving tools, etc. I usually charge them for some good hours then start working on them. Wow, am I just that smart? LOL

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Probably not

The battery is pretty good I use sometimes 2 cycles a day, and its still at 100%

I always have mine plugged in, it runs way faster.

And 2 cycles a day? I don't use that in a week!

KeithTeeple said:

Sure. 3 cycles in a week is a bit on the heavy side as far as I'm concerned.

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Than I am on the dark side with 2 cycles or more a day.

KeithTeeple said:

I always have mine plugged in, and when it's not the max is for 10 minutes. MacBook's batteries are good for about 300-350 cycles. So try to always keep it plugged in.

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FALSE FALSE FALSE!
How about less than one year of usage, exactly 450 cycles (posting time), 92% battery health, which makes mine go like this:
2 & 1/2 hours widescreen movies, 75%+ sound
3 hours programming time (itunes always in the background)
Almost 4 hours just programming

LE: And I forgot to say that I am connected to my network wirelessly

How I achieved this? Oh well, at least 1 cycle per day, at least 1 battery draining per week (I mean while programming + itunes, I plug it in when the battery says 1 minute for about 30 seconds ). Once a week, full drain the battery, meaning I wait for it to go to sleep before I plug it in. Online times range up to 10 hours a day, and the media is I think around 6 or 7 hours.

The only downside is that lately it restarts itself because of kernel panics (around 6 times since I got it), but I am on to that too.

KeithTeeple said:

I don't think you've destroyed your battery, but whenever you're trying to install something, and especially setting up a new computer ALWAYS have it plugged in, otherwise your battery will run out very quickly.

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No, you haven't destroyed your battery. My guess is that it was faulty from start.

KeithTeeple said:

Don't use a bright wallpaper either. I burnt this HUGE yellow mark in my screen.

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What do you mean by it burnt a yellow mark in your screen, because I generally have bright wallpapers, so I don't want this to happen to me. If you could post a pic that'd be cool too.